Rural mail box



- B. HAJICEK RURAL MAIL BOX Feb. 28, 1939.

Filed July 2Q, 1958 INVENTOR all ATTOR N EYS Patented Feb. 28, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to rural mail boxes.

Rural mail boxes and their supporting posts are prone to be wrecked or damaged by snow plows, hay racks, grading machine, or any other vehicle that may extend upon and over the shoulder portion of the road.

With the above disadvantage in mind the present invention provides a mail box which will be suspended over the traveled portion of the road in a position readily accessible to a rural mail carrier but which will be adapted to swing aside when struck by a moving object and afterward swing back to normal position without damage to the box or its supporting post.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, it being understood that various modifications may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claim without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a rural mail box and its supporting post, constructed in .accord ance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the rural mail box and its post, the box being shown in dotted lines as swung out of the way.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 33 of Figure 1 and showing the shaft upon which the sleeve swings to carry the mail box out of the way.

Figure 4 is .a cross sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3 showing the stop pin on the shaft and collar on the sleeve to prevent surreptitious removal of the sleeve and mail box from the post.

Referring now to the drawing in which like characters of reference designate similar parts in the various views, l0 designates a tubular metal post provided with the usual anchor ll adapted to be imbedded in the ground along side of a 45 road.

The post is provided with an inclined upper end l2 which is inclined upwardly and inwardly toward the road side when the post is imbedded in the ground.

A shaft [3, best shown in Figure 3, has its lower end I fixedly secured in any preferred manner in the inclined end portion [2 of the post. A sleeve I5 is rotatably mounted on the shaft and bears at its lower end against the upper end of 55 the inclined portion of the post. The internal diameter of the sleeve is slightly greater than the external diameter of the shaft, and the sleeve is provided at its lower end with a collar [6 which contacts with the shaft. A pin [1 passes through the shaft and projects slightly beyond the same to cooperate with the collar of the sleeve and 5 prevent surreptitious removal of the sleeve from the shaft.

The sleeve is provided with an opening I8 to permit application of the pin after the sleeve has been applied to the shaft. A guide collar I9 10 is fixed to the inner surface of the sleeve and loosely receives the end portion of the shaft.

A conventional rural mail box 20 is provided with a bracket arm 2| having a horizontal portion which is secured to the bottom of the mail 5 box by bolts 23 or other connectors. The bracket arm is provided beyond the mail box with an upwardly inclined portion 24 which is rigidly secured to the upper end of the sleeve l5 and projects at a right angle to the sleeve. When 20 the mail box 20 is struck by a vehicle of any type the sleeve will swivel on the shaft l3 and the mail box will be carried in an arc to extend in rear of the post out of the way. Gravity returns the mail box to its normal'position, the sleeve l5 swiveling in a retrograde direction to permit this 2 operation.

From the above description it is thought that the construction and operation of the invention will be fully understood without further explanation.

What is claimed is:

' A swinging mail box comprising a post having an inclined upper end portion, a shaft having its lower end secured to said end portion, a sleeve rotatably mounted upon the shaft and bearing at its lower end against said end portion, the internal diameter of the sleeve being slightly greater than the external diameter of the shaft, a collar on the lower end of the sleeve contacting with the shaft, a pin passed through the shaft and projecting slightly beyond the same to cooperate with the collar and prevent the sleeve being surreptitiously removed from the shaft, a mail box, and a mail box carrying arm having a horizontal portion secured to the mail box and having a portion inclined upwardly toward the sleeve and secured at the upper end to the upper end of the sleeve, there being .an opening in the sleeve to permit application of the pin after the sleeve has been applied to the shaft, said mail box carrying arm adapted to be swung about the shaft as an axis of rotation when struck by traflie and adapted to swing back to operative position after each actuation.

BEN HAJICEK. 

